Wish You Were Here
A quick note of noteness Sorrowpaw's disease is feline leukemia. For those of you who aren't sure. ~End of Note of Noteness~ I'll doze off safe and soundly But I'll miss your arms around me I'd send a postcard to you dear 'Cause I wish you were here... Prologue The she-cat's breath was fading. The tom was quivering by the door. "What are you doing?! You're just sitting there, you have to do something!!!" He cried, bristling. "We've done all we can." The gray she-cat hung her head. The four tiny kits were lying there, two completely still, one fighting for breath, and one seeming to thrive. "I'm going to let you come in and say your goodbyes now." The she-cat mewed. The tom nodded, simply a black shape moving through the night air. He nosed her lifeless body. "Goodbye." he whispered. "I'll miss you. Take good care of our two kits in StarClan." He looked to the other two. "Their names are Sorrowkit and Fatekit." "But those are cruel names!" The small ginger she-cat protested. "Are you trying to tell me what StarClan did to me, what StarClan did to her, what StarClan did to our kits was less cruel?" "No, but sometimes... sometimes things are beyond StarClan's powers. I'll miss her as much as you will." The tom felt like throwing up. His tears fell down. "Goodbye, Scarletfrost. I'll miss you... visit me sometime." Chapter One-Sorrowpaw Sorrowpaw had had the disease since she was a kit. It wasn't a disease in its self, but if she fell ill with another sickness, she would probably die. Everyone said her red-and-silver patched pelt looked a lot like her mother's. Her mother had died giving birth. Maybe Sorrowpaw was cursed. Maybe she would die too. Her father would have nothing to do with her, scared that if he got too attached to her he would have another loss. He spent all his time with Fatebreeze. Fatebreeze already had her warrior name. Sorrowpaw was starting to doubt she would ever have hers. Just because Fatebreeze was in that battle didn't mean she was more mature, or better in any way, than Sorrowpaw. Just because Sorrowpaw didn't get picked for the battle. "Hi, Sorrowpaw." Fatebreeze mewed. "Go away." Sorrowpaw grumbled around her mouse. "Why don't you ever feel like talking to me?" Fatebreeze asked. "We used to do everything together when we were- when I was an apprentice." "Exactly- I mean- ugh, never mind." Sorrowpaw flicked her tail and went back to eating her mouse. "Did you catch any prey yet today?" Fatebreeze asked. "Yes. As a matter of fact, I caught a rabbit and two fat mice!" Okay... maybe the fat part was a bit of an exaggeration. They were more like... large-ish. "Okay. Just checking." Fatebreeze walked away, her smooth black pelt shimmering in the setting sunlight. Fatebreeze had been stronger and larger than Sorrowpaw since birth, but that didn't mean she could go around bragging about it. Sorrowpaw felt a little bad for Fatebreeze.... maybe she wasn't trying to brag. Maybe she was just checking in with her sister. Sorrowpaw padded to the apprentices' den to get some sleep. Chapter Two-The Attack Sorrowpaw was sitting with her two friends-her only two friends-Wolfpaw and Fernpaw. They were eating their morning meal before battle training. Fernpaw and Wolfpaw were a little younger than her, but they would probably share a warrior ceremony. Fatebreeze was out on the dawn patrol, which wasn't back yet for some reason. Sorrowpaw shrugged, the red pelt on her shoulders rippling and shining in the sun. The morning was peaceful. There were birds tweeting in tree branches around ThunderClan's camp and sun filtering through them. Until the dawn patrol-Fatebreeze, Blackshadow, Skyfire, and Snowtail-burst through the camp entrance, pelts bristling, fear in their eyes. An open gash on Blackshadow's shoulder made Sorrowpaw wince, and her eyes filled with tears as she saw blood trickling onto her father's one white front paw. Skyfire's pelt was torn off in several places. Flare, a former loner, looked up from a morning nap he was taking. Who takes a nap so soon after sleeping all night? ''Sorrowpaw barely had time to wonder before Fatebreeze gasped out "Loners... Attacking... Heading for camp... Tried to hold them off..." She was obviously winded, probably from running so long. "...Defeated us." She hung her head. Sandstar scrambled onto the highledge, yowling for everyone's attention. "Here's what we'll do. Apprentices, against the back wall, lined up against the elder's den and nursery. Queens will also help defend the nursery. All kits and elders are in their respective dens, hiding." She paused, giving the cats time to carry out that order. Sorrowpaw ended up in front of the nursery, in between Wolfpaw and Scartail, a queen with deep cuts and torn fur on her tail, from a battle long ago. "Now for the warriors. More experienced warriors, position yourselves in a circular formation in the middle of camp. Younger warriors, line up along side walls and back the more experienced warriors up." Chapter Three- The Battle The loners came. First there were ten of them, then there were fifteen, then they started multiplying by fives and tens, until they became a whole clan's worth. Before Sorrowpaw knew it, she was cornered by a bright ginger tabby she-cat. The red fur along her back pricked up, and she lifted one silver paw to slash at the she-cat. She traced a shallow scratch-mark in the she-cat's shoulder, and it welled up with blood. The she-cat hissed and her eyes flashed an even brighter shade of green. She tore at Sorrowpaw's ear. Blood trickled down and blinded one of her eyes, but she didn't give up. She leaped at the loner and pinned her down, but she was too strong and soon flipped Sorrowpaw over, sinking her teeth into Sorrowpaw's front leg. Sorrowpaw winced as she digged deeper and deeper. The loner's teeth started to get stained by blood, and Sorrowpaw's paw was stained too. But then she saw a flash of dark gray pelt, a glint of eyes the colour of the night sky, and before she knew it the loner was running away in terror. "Th-thanks." she whispered as she realized how much her leg hurt and began to cry. "No problem. That paw looks pretty bad, you should go see Dovepelt and Gingerflower." her rescuer was revealed to be Wolfpaw as he spoke. "O-okay." She began limping over to the medicine cat's den, but she soon stumbled. "You can lean on me." Wolfpaw mewed. He ducked under her shoulder and guided her to the medicine cat's den. "Another injured cat?" Dovepelt asked, glancing to Sorrowpaw. Wolfpaw nodded. "You can bring her over here." Dovepelt nodded to the last empty nest. Sorrowpaw limped over and curled up in the nest. Dovepelt spread a poultice on her paw and bound it with cobwebs. Sorrowpaw had only once been in the medicine cat's den before- when she was a kit and she had a fever. She was usually banned from the medicine cat's den, except when she was sick or injured herself. Dovepelt then wrapped her ear in cobwebs. "You're lucky those are your only two injuries- the paw might scar, and you'll always have the tear in your ear, but you'll heal." She moved on to the next cat. Sorrowpaw then heard whispering outside. She only caught a few words. "Injured cats.... yes.... then.... let's... COME ON EVERYONE! WE FOUND WHERE THEY'RE KEEPING THE INJURED CATS!" Sorrowpaw jumped. Loners flooded the medicine cat's den. ''No... These aren't loners... they're rogues. They don't care that we're injured, they're attacking us for no reason... "Wait!" Sandstar yowled. "We... we give up. Take what you want from us, but please, don't hurt our cats anymore." Sorrowpaw bristled at first, but then she noticed... battles sometimes must be lost. Chapter Four- Announcements "Alright." A large gray tom stepped forward. "We want your... your apprentices? Is that what you call them?" "You aren't taking them." "Very well. Shadow Flashes, CONTINUE FIGHTING!" "NO! Fine.... just let me go announce it." Sandstar hung her head and padded up to the highledge. The gray tom nodded. The Clan gathered underneath the highledge. "Although we have no time before they leave to go through the traditional ceremony, I would like to give our apprentices their warrior names." Sorrowpaw, Wolfpaw, Fernpaw, Cinderpaw, Mysterypaw, Hazelpaw, Gingerpaw and Maplepaw trudged to the center of the clearing. "Sorrowpelt, Wolfstep, Ferndrop, Cinderflower, Mysteryfeather, Hazelbelly, Gingercloud, Maplebreeze, may StarClan light your paths. I hope to see you again someday." The clan half-heartedly called the new names. "Since Sorrowpelt is going, it's only fair Fatebreeze goes too. Goodbye, young warriors. We will miss you." Chapter five- Captive When Sorrowpelt woke up the next morning, she was in the dark. She could barely see the circle of wood around her. Under her paws was cold, hard ground. She shifted her weight, and instantly brushed pelts with another cat. She pressed against the edge of the space. "Who's there?" She called. "Sorrowpelt? It's just me." a voice called back. "W-Wolfstep?" "Yes." "Is anyone else in here?" "No, they're keeping them somewhere else." Sorrowpelt relaxed her muscles. "How did they get us in here?" "I found a tunnel- come on, it's big enough for us to fit if we go one at a time." Her eyes were adjusting to the dark, and she could see Wolfstep's silhouette moving. He gingerly stepped out into a tunnel. She then noticed light filtering through it, and went to crouch under it. Wolfstep disappeared out of the tunnel and Sorrowpelt followed him. When she looked around, she saw she was in a clearing. She had been trapped underneath a tree.The other young warriors had found their way out, so she and Wolfstep went to sit next to Ferndrop. "Here." A large, battle-scarred tom dropped a scrawny mouse in front of each of them. The tom was white, spotted with dark brown. His amber eyes blazed, and his voice was deep and gravelly. Sorrowpelt shrank back, scared by the cat. She didn't feel like eating her mouse. She looked around camp. She saw Maplebreeze and Gingercloud talking together, the sisters' ginger pelts sparkling in the sun. They looked scared, but not sad. They didn't seem to miss their family at all. Cinderflower and Mysteryfeather were talking together in a corner. Mysteryfeather had a solemn look in her eyes, and Cinderflower looked unsure. Maybe they were talking about a plan. Then there were Hazelbelly and Fatebreeze. They sat together, chatting away like normal. They disgusted Sorrowpelt. She sighed, and noticed she was a little hungry. She reluctantly picked at her mouse, wondering how she was going to get out of here. Chapter Six- Who's In? When Sorrowpelt finally finished her mouse, the same large gray tom from before stepped onto a rock in the clearing's center. "All Shadow Flashes, a meeting is in order!" They act almost like a clan... ''Sorrowpelt thought. ''But a Clan of brutal killers. She and the other captives sat in the back. "We have retrieved new young cats from the first forest Clan. Please step forward." Sorrowpelt was shocked. ''Are they going to do this to every Clan? ''But she followed Wolfstep, Ferndrop, Maplebreeze, Gingercloud, Cinderflower, Mysteryfeather, Hazelbelly, and Fatebreeze forward. "As some of you may know, they have to go through initiation. It may take days, but whoever comes back alive is in. No helping each other. First, catch three pieces of prey. Next, the nearest Shadow Flash will tell you what to do. If you don't come back... I will find you. And you don't want to know what I'll do when I find you. Don't worry about taking too long to find a Shadow Flash, they will be positioned all over the forest. Initiation starts... NOW!" Sorrowpelt instantly dashed into the forest. ''What kind of prey will impress the Shadow Flashes? ''She picked up the scent of a squirrel. ''That'll do. ''She crept cautiously along the trail. She was led to a bush, and when she peered around it saw a very plump, tired-looking squirrel washing its face near a puddle. It was clearly enjoying new-leaf. It was an easy, but impressive catch. She crept around the bush, then dashed out, flashing her paw and knocking it to the ground, followed by a bite to the neck. The squirrel instantly went limp. ''A clean catch. ''She was proud of herself, and she buried her squirrel under the tree. Now, the scent of a large bird floated down. It was a hawk. ''Can I really catch it alone? ''She shrugged off the doubt. She had to be strong to live. She quickly and quietly climbed the tree. It was tall, but she reached the branch the hawk was on. She pounced. For a moment, she felt like she was flying. Then she fell. She grabbed the first thing she could find. The air pressure caused her to close her eyes as she fell anyway. Then she felt something struggling to pull her up. She had grabbed the hawk's wing! ''Can it really carry my weight? ''When they reached another tree, she hesitantly sunk her teeth into the hawk's neck. ''What am I doing? It rescued me... ''She had to catch it, though. She fell with the now dead hawk until she hit something hard. She was winded, but recovered. She had landed on the root of a tree, and some moss had cushioned her fall. ~**~**~ Soon Sorrowpelt was back at the bush, dragging the hawk, the squirrel, and a mouse. She almost bumped into a pale brown she-cat. "Good job." She snarled. It sounded more like a death threat than congratulations. "Now- hey, are you the cat Ginger was fighting?" "How am I supposed to know?" "Right, you're new. Ginger is the orange tabby with lots of scars. Hard to mistake her for someone else." "Oh, yeah, I fought a cat like that in the battle." "And... by the looks of it, you survived. I'll think of a different task for you then, I don't want to fight you." Apparently defeating this Ginger cat was an incredible feat. Maybe Sorrowpelt could gain some respect around here. Chapter Seven- Passed by Default "Well, what's your name?" The pale brown she-cat asks. "Sorrowpelt." Sorrowpelt winced because she hated telling the story of her name. "It's... a long story." "Name's Pine. You can go back and tell Scar, our leader, I've passed you by default." She hesitates. "Actually, I'll come with you, he might not believe you." Sorrowpelt nodded, surprised this had been so easy. ~**~**~ When she got to the camp, or whatever it was called, Scar suddenly jerked his head up. It looked like he'd been taking a nap, which Sorrowpelt laughed at for a second before she realized that would probably get her in a lot of trouble. "Pine, why are you back with that one so soon?" "She fought Ginger and survived, so I figured she probably passed." Pine shrugged. "What? That tiny little thing?" Scar said, his voice filled with disbelief. ''She ''fought Ginger. And got away with barely any injuries." "Um... my friend Wolfstep helped a bit." "Go find Wolfstep, Pine." Scar turned to Sorrowpelt. "You can go sit over there and wait." Sorrowpelt nodded and walked over to the corrner Scar had pointed his tail to. ~**~**~ Sorrowpelt closed her eyes and listened. She could hear yelps, she could hear yowls of both victory and sorrow. Just then, Pine and Wolfstep walked into the camp, Pine dragging a small, brown cat, fighting for breath. Ferndrop. Sorrowpelt gasped and ran over. "What happened to Ferndrop?" She yowled. "I... I don't know." Wolfstep managed. "Pine and I were coming here, and... I saw the brown tail and... I went to look and then..." "She... she looks like she's still alive. Is there any way to save her? Do you have a medicine cat?" Sorrowpelt asked Pine, trying to calm down. "Yes, but Crescent isn't here..." "Where is she? Doesn't she have an apprentice or something?" "No, she... Well, the old healer just died, actually. Her name was Dark, and..." Chapter Eight- Sunrise Sorrowpelt was curled up quietly in a corner of the clearing, tail swishing slightly and tucked over her nose. The dawning morning shone on her fur, tinting the pale gray patches in shades of bright orange and pink. Next to her stood Wolfstep, his dark gray fur stained with tears, and his yellow eyes glowing in the half-light. An insect flitted past his nose, and he flicked an ear. At his feet lay a dull-pelted brown tabby, all signs of life faded from her light green eyes that usually glowed with happiness. Wolfstep wouldn't wake up his friend to tell her the news. She would take it better if she wasn't grumpy from the morning. Wolfstep's eyelids drooped a little, and he lay down next to his sister's lifeless body. ~**~**~ Sorrowpelt's dreams were simply memories. When she was a kit, and she didn't understand the world and nobody knew she was sick. The time she got a cough. A small cough, she remembered. Not enough to kill an energetic kit like her, just as Dovepelt had said. Yet it almost did. It was a miracle she did, the way her heart was irregularly beating, and the way the coughs shook her body. She barely made it. Then they knew something was wrong with her. Everything was downhill from there... nobody wanted to be her friend, they would say that she was dangerous. There was nothing really wrong with her. ~**~**~ When Sorrowpelt cracked open her deep green eyes, she realized how long she had slept. She looked around the clearing. Memories of the Shadow Flashes came back to her. Maplebreeze had made it, but Sorrowpelt didn't see Gingercloud anywhere. Everyone else was still there. Wolfstep was nowhere to be seen, and neither was Ferndrop. She realized Pine had padded up behind her. "Come with me... there's something I think you'll want to be there for." Sorrowpelt bowed her head and quietly padded after Pine. Pine led her out of the clearing, twisting and turning around rocks and tree stumps, brushing her fur against them to mark scent. She had been led to a sandy area, and a lifeless Ferndrop was lying in the center, her eyes closed peacefully, but one of her front legs bent awkwardly. Wolfstep had his head bowed softly over her. She had died. Sorrowpelt couldn't move, couldn't talk, couldn't ''breathe. ''Wolfstep looked cold, tired, and numb. He looked stiff, as if he wasn't even Wolfstep, just a Wolfstep-shaped pile of wood and long, dark gray fur.